James comes through at end vs. Magic, Heat win streak at 16

But the result was familiar, the Miami Heat franchise-record winning streak now at 16, one victory off the longest in the NBA this season.

No, this 97-96 victory Wednesday night over the Orlando Magic at AmericanAirlines Arena hardly played out as expected.

Except for LeBron James at the finish, with his driving layup with 3.2 seconds to play closing the scoring.

That played out just fine.

"He just kind of spaced it and drove it and jumped over everybody and put it in with his left hand," coach Erik Spoelstra said of the play that accounted for the last two of James' game-high 26 points.

After missing a pair of 3-pointers moments earlier, James said one way or the other, he was getting to the rim.

"I had no intention," he said, "of pulling up for a jumper."

The winning basket came off a pick-and-roll called out of a timeout by Spoelstra, after Magic forward Al Harrington was off with a 3-point attempt with 12.6 seconds to play and Orlando up one.

Problem was, James secured the rebound of that Harrington miss while on the move, in position to play in the open floor.

That's also when a whistle sounded, one referee believing Spoelstra wanted a timeout, which he didn't.

"It was miscommunication," Spoelstra said. "The official apologized. I had told him before that, if they make it, I was calling time out."

Not only did that plan blow up, so did the plan to run the pick-and-roll with center Chris Bosh.

No matter, the Heat and James ultimately found a way.

"We wanted to get our tallest guy and most athletic guy to the rim," Heat guard Dwyane Wade said.

Teammate Shane Battier said he had no doubt James could make something out of nothing.

"He had that look in his eye," Battier said. "We knew he was going to get to the rim one way or another."

Like last week's victories over the visiting Cleveland Cavaliers and Sacramento Kings, the Heat again appeared to be at a loss for motivation against a league lightweight after moving to a large early lead, this time up 15 at halftime and then by 20 early in the third quarter.

"One minute we're up 20," Wade said, "the next minute we're not."

But like those two escape acts, superior talent and athleticism eventually prevailed, with only the Los Angeles Clippers' 17-game winning streak longer this season in the NBA. The Heat's 16-game streak ties for the 18th longest in NBA history.

"You cannot win that many games in a row without winning some games that you shouldn't win," Wade said. "You've just got to get lucky and you've got to get some breaks."

The Heat also made their breaks, including Battier drawing a key late charge and then Wade being able to avoid being called for a foul with a final-seconds blocked shot against former University of Miami forward DeQuan Jones.

The victory extended the Heat's home winning streak to 12, with the next three also at home, Friday against the Philadelphia 76ers, a Sunday showdown against the Indiana Pacers and then next Tuesday against the Atlanta Hawks, before heading out on a five-game trip.

Wade added 24 points, with Bosh scoring 17, joining James as the only players scoring in double-figures for the Heat.

Magic center Nik Vucevic once again did not make it easy.

The best center this season from last summer's four-team mega-trade that included Dwight Howard and Andrew Bynum?

That would be Vucevic.

Says who? Says the Heat.

For a while, it seemed as if Vucevic would get in the way, this time closing with 25 points and 21 rebounds, the second 20-20 of his career, with both coming against the Heat.

"That guy," Bosh said, "is a load."

After going for 20 points and a franchise-record 29 rebounds in the teams' first meeting, a Magic overtime loss on New Year's Eve, the 7-foot, 240-pound former Philadelphia 76er continued to grow on the Heat on Wednesday night.

And not in a good way.

"He should play every game against us," Spoelstra said, with Vucevic fouling out late, as did the Magic's Moe Harkless and Tobias Harris, who each had their moments.

It reached a point where the Heat gave the defensive assignment on Vucevic to James. Then, when Vucevic was disqualified, James moved defensively against Magic point guard Jameer Nelson.

"It's a challenge," James said, "when you have to guard multiple guys."

It's also a challenge when you go up 20, fall behind and then have to scramble to victory against a team that now is 17-45.

"We stalled a little bit on offense, and that played into their hands," Bosh said. "But then we got it right."